‘Blade Runner 2049’ Kicks Off October Box Office as Clear Favorite

Last weekend’s box office saw “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” narrowly hold on to the No. 1 spot on a weekend where it competed with “It” and “American Made,” two films that also promised their own form of R-rated thrills. But this weekend will see three different new releases compete for different demographics, and it’s a guarantee that there won’t be a close race to the finish.

That’s because Warner Bros./Alcon’s “Blade Runner 2049” is expected to easily take the top spot this weekend, with studio and independent trackers expecting an opening of at least $45 million to $50 million from 4,000+ screens. With a reported budget of $150 million, that might not sound like a strong start, but a $45 million opening would match the start earned two years ago by “Mad Max: Fury Road,” which went on to score a multiple of 3.39x with $154 million domestic and $378 million worldwide.

“Blade Runner 2049” will aim to have similar legs through October, riding off the name recognition of its title, its leading stars, Harrison Ford and Ryan Gosling, and its director, Denis Villeneuve. It also has strong critical reception behind it, with a “Certified Fresh” Rotten Tomatoes score of 94 percent. Like “Fury Road,” that could lead to some potential Oscar nominations next year that could further boost its box office appeal.

“Blade Runner 2049” sees Harrison Ford return as Rick Deckard as he is hunted by an LAPD Blade Runner (Gosling) investigating a movement to free bioengineered humans known as Replicants. Villeneuve directed from a script written by original “Blade Runner” screenwriter Hampton Fancher with Michael Green. Ana de Armas, Sylvia de Hoeks, Robin Wright, Dave Bautista, and Jared Leto also star. Andrew A. Kosove, Broderick Johnson, and Bud & Cynthia Yorkin are producers, with original “Blade Runner” director Ridley Scott as executive producer.

Also releasing this weekend is Fox 2000/Chernin Entertainment’s “The Mountain Between Us,” a romance/disaster film that premiered in Toronto and stars Idris Elba and Kate Winslet as two survivors of a plane crash in the mountains of Utah. Trackers have the film making $11 million to $13 million from 2,900 screens. Hany Abu-Assad directed from a script by Chris Weitz and J. Mills Goodloe, with Peter Chernin, David Ready and Jenno Topping as producers. The film currently has a 56 percent Rotten Tomatoes rating.

Finally, there’s Lionsgate’s “My Little Pony: The Movie,” the film adaptation of the hit animated TV series, “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.” The family film is tracking for an opening of roughly $10 million from 2,500 screens. Jayson Thiessen is directing from a screenplay by Meghan McCarthy, Rita Hsiao, and Michael Vogel. Brian Goldner, Haven Alexander, Stephen Davis, and Marcia Gwendolyn Jones are producers.

"Thor: Ragnarok," "Justice League" and "Star Wars" will surely dominate the box office in the remaining months of 2017. But along with those would-be blockbusters are several smaller films competing for moviegoers' attention. Here are the seven head-to-head box office showdowns to look out for this fall.

Sept. 15: “mother!” vs. “American Assassin”: If its trailer and NSFW poster are any indication, Darren Aronofsky’s horror show looks like its going to be as terrifying and unforgiving a movie as one can expect. While critical acclaim could give it a boost, “American Assassin” has more crowd pleasing elements with “Teen Wolf” star Dylan O’Brien in the lead, and a story based on Vince Flynn’s best-selling Mitch Rapp novels.

Sept. 22: "The Lego Ninjago Movie" vs. "Kingsman the Golden Circle": Like its "Lego Movie" predecessors, "Ninjago" should be a big draw for family audiences who haven't had a major film for them since "Despicable Me 3" and "The Emoji Movie." Facing it is the R-rated "Kingsman" sequel, which will aim to turn the cult following its predecessor earned into a strong opening.

Sept. 29:"Flatliners" vs. "American Made": After starring in the critically maligned "Mummy" remake this summer, Tom Cruise will star in "American Made," which tells the true story of an an airline pilot who becomes a drug smuggler and later a DEA informant. Facing it will be Columbia's "Flatliners," a sequel to the 1990 cult hit about experiments that induce near-death experiences.

Oct. 20: "Only the Brave" vs. "Geostorm" vs. "The Snowman" vs. "Boo! 2": A quartet of wild card releases hit theaters in the third weekend of October. The one that has the best shot of a strong opening is "Boo! 2," the latest film in Tyler Perry's popular "Madea" series. The first "Boo!" made $28.5 million in its opening weekend.

Oct. 27: "Jigsaw" vs. "Suburbicon": It was only a matter of time before the "Saw" franchise came back to play another game, but after "It," "mother!" and "Happy Death Day" hit theaters, will audiences come back for a fourth helping from an old franchise on Halloween weekend? Against it is Oscar contender "Suburbicon," which features -- get ready -- George Clooney directing Matt Damon, Julianne Moore and Oscar Isaac from a script co-written by the Coen Brothers.

Nov. 10: "Daddy's Home 2" vs. "Murder on Orient Express" vs. "Thor: Ragnarok": After posting the worst box office performance of his career with "The House," Will Ferrell will try to do better with a sequel to his 2015 collab with Mark Wahlberg. Kenneth Branagh's star-studded adaptation of Agatha Christie's famous murder mystery novel will also release this weekend, but both could fall to "Thor: Ragnarok," which will be in its second weekend.

Dec. 22: Christmas Releases: Let's be real. All of these holiday weekend releases will be fighting for whatever scraps of moviegoers "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" leaves behind. But "Pitch Perfect 3," the final installment in Kay Cannon's hit musical comedy, has a real shot at a solid opening. Other movies in this group include an adaptation of the TV series "The Six Billion Dollar Man" and Oscar contender "Downsizing," which stars Matt Damon as a man who joins a growing group of people who shrink themselves and join miniature communities.

We know “Thor: Ragnarok” will dominate when it opens in November, but here are the most competitive weekends to watch

"Thor: Ragnarok," "Justice League" and "Star Wars" will surely dominate the box office in the remaining months of 2017. But along with those would-be blockbusters are several smaller films competing for moviegoers' attention. Here are the seven head-to-head box office showdowns to look out for this fall.